Lyndie Wright

Lyndie Wright has been designing and bringing remarkable puppets to life since her youth. She and her sister grew up in a house where there was no art, yet their passion for painting was undeniable from a young age, resourcefully employing any materials at their disposal. Her creativity evolved into a fascination with string puppets and as her art school training in South Africa came to an end, she happened across the work of puppeteer John Wright, who was touring in South Africa. In true ‘Lyndie’ style, she immediately asked for a job and, one month later, was a member of the touring company. After moving from South Africa to England in 1958, she attended Central School of Art in London as a painter. In 1961, Lyndie and her now husband, John Wright, founded the renowned Little Angel Theatre. Living in the little cottage next door to the theatre, with the workshop between, Lyndie and John together defined the landscape of British puppetry at the time. Puppeteers and craftspeople trained with them, joined the company, brought materials to life in the workshop, ran the box office, poured the coffee, toured in the van and watched the shows in their countless iterations and locations. Having been inspired by John and Lyndie’s work, those puppeteers have in turn created and grown theatres and companies across the world from Scotland to South Africa, across Europe and the USA. At home, puppetry was not just a work activity; it was an essential part of everyday family life. Lyndie Wright’s children, nurtured in an environment saturated with art, have pursued successful creative careers of their own; Sarah Wright is a puppeteer, puppet director and the founder of the Curious School of Puppetry, and Joe Wright a renowned film director (Pride and Prejudice, Atonement, Anna Karenina, Darkest Hour).